18 Months Later
by prince zuko3
Summary: *A Prequel to "Order of the Phoenix" * Certain events that unfold during Aang's 18th birthday unravel a secret he's held onto for 3 years.


***A prequel to Order of the Phoenix*  
**

* * *

Aang walked through the halls, it was his final year of high school, the year everyone told him mattered the most, everyone constantly reminded him to make the most of it. He placed his books into his locker and pulled out his backpack. The other students quickly swarmed the locker bay around him, he could see Zuko in the distance, talking with Sokka.

"Hey Aang." Suki said, there was regret and sadness in her voice, "Can I talk to you for a minute?"

Aang stepped away from the crowded lockers and walked with Suki to an area free of people. "What's up Suki?"

Suki sighed, "Don't be mad." She started, "Jet asked Katara out…"

Aang's face dropped, "She said yes, didn't she?"

"Yeah." She replied, she noticed the agitation on Aang's face, as well as the hurt. "You going to be okay?"

"Do I really have a choice?" He paused for a moment, "I don't get why she said yes, she knows how I feel about her."

Suki had been friends with Katara since the early years of their school life and even she didn't understand what was going through Katara's mind. "Maybe she didn't want to keep waiting for you?"

Aang had been thinking of ways to ask Katara out for an entire year, he just didn't want to make things awkward between them. It didn't help that he feelings for his best friend, Mai. "I guess it doesn't even matter anymore."

"Don't do anything stupid Aang, I'll talk to you later." Suki briefly hugged him and left.

**Xoxoxoxoxox  
**  
Aang's birthday was three days later, he kept his cool, inviting Katara and Jet over even though they had killed his mood just days before. As was custom in their group when a member turned eighteen a massive party was thrown at their house and half the school was invited. Aang's fairly large back yard was filled with teens he barely knew dancing and drinking, sitting in their little clichés. The porch at the back of his yard had a DJ playing various dance music.

Aang and his closest group of friends sat in the entertainment room in the house, away from the rest of the group. Aang sat on a bean bag, Mai to his right on her own bean bag. On the couch Katara sat, attempting to secretly hold Jet's hand but it was clear she was doing so, Zuko laid out on the floor, the effects of the alcohol taking place as he spoke with Sokka, who sat beside him. Toph, the underage member of the group sat with Jet and Katara, though no one cared she was drinking, it made her feel as though she was somewhat grown up for a while. Suki sat beside Sokka, but was talking with Ty lee.

"How are you feeling?" Mai asked Aang from beside him, his best friend for five years.

Aang shifted on the bean bag, "Like I've had too much to drink and don't have a means of expressing my pent up frustrations."

Mai chuckled, "Even intoxicated you still manage to make your words have far more depth than necessary."

Aang rolled his eyes and stole a glance at Katara, she was talking to Toph but while he attention was else where she failed to hide her and Jet's interlocked hands, a mix of jealousy and anger rising in Aang. He had been close with Jet for the past year, it was in fact he that invited him to join their group despite Sokka's doubts it, Jet managed to prove himself as a friend. Aang had told him a few months ago of his attraction towards Katara, the anger came from Jet's clear ignorance towards Aang's feelings.

Mai noticed the anger dancing across his face as he continued to stare at the new couple. "Aang…" She called to him, trying to get his attention. "Aang please…" He looked at her briefly, the anger remained but she noticed his features soften as he looked at her. "Let it go."

"You want me to let it go?" He looked at her, she expected him to be outraged, but he simply seemed confused, "Mai, Jet knew how I felt about Katara, everyone knew." Aang looked back at them and she saw his anger flare once more, "Especially her."

"Well seems as though they didn't care, let it go." Mai stated.

Aang looked back at her, "You're right, they didn't care." Aang stood up, and despite Mai's pleas he strode over to the couch.

"Hey Aang." Katara said, her tone too sugary sweet, like she was trying to make up for her actions with her tone of voice.

"I think you guys should leave." Aang cut her off before she could say anything else.

"What?" she asked, she looked at Jet and then back at Aang. "But it's your birthday, we're here to celebrate."

"I don't want you here." Aang answered, his voice so blank it scared her.

By now the rest of the group had taken notice of the scene that was developing. Sokka stood up, dizzy from the alcohol. He stabilized himself on the edge of the couch before stumbling over to Aang. "Come on bud, I think we need to go find ourselves another drink." He placed his hands over Aang's shoulders, trying to drag him away from Katara and Jet.

"Sokka please, get away from me." Aang shrugged Sokka's arms off his shoulders, and Sokka returned to his place, too intoxicated to help any further. "I won't ask again. Get out."

Jet stood then, intentionally bumping into Aang as he did so causing him to stumble backwards. Mai's breath hitched in her throat as she watched Aang balance himself and then strike Jet in the face, knocking him onto the couch he and Katara were previously sitting at. Mai stood up, and pulled Aang away before he could do any more damage.

"You knew how I felt about her." Aang yelled over Mai's shoulder as Jet got back to his feet, his left cheek beginning to swell.

"Yeh I knew how you felt about her, did you act on it?" Jet started, "No you didn't, you can't have two girls Aang, you pick one and lose the other. You took too long, so I picked for you." Jet wiped at his eye, making sure there was no blood. "How about you tell Mai how you feel about her hey?"

It was then that Sokka stumbled back to his feet and punched Jet in the same place Aang had. "How dare you say that." Sokka stated, seemingly coming out of his intoxicated state. Katara's jaw dropped, completely unaware of the fact that Aang had loved two girls at the same time. Everyone else in the room looked shocked, other than Zuko and Sokka who Aang had told a years before.

Mai stepped away from Aang, confusion across her face, "Aang?"

Aang looked down at the floor and sighed, "It's true." He started, he looked back up, around the room, the expression on each person's face mirroring the next, confusion and surprise. "I've been in love with both of you for as long as I can remember."

"Does that make you happy Jet." Sokka stated, Jet again struggled back to his feet. "Don't come back around here anymore." Sokka said for Aang, also referring to any other hang out the group had.

Aang left the room then, abandoning the rest of his friends in the entertainment room, he retreated to his bedroom and punched the door, dinting the wood slightly.

* * *

"Aang." Sokka knocked on his door before entering. Aang was standing at his window, watching the party die out from above. "Zuko really isn't able to travel right now, is it okay if he crashes on the couch down stairs?"

"That'll be fine Sokka." Aang stated, turning around. "Thank you for what you did last night. I guess Jet scared Mai away?"

Sokka smiled slightly, "Quite the opposite, she's sat in the corner all night, a small smile on her lips." He paused for a moment, "Probably thinking about you."

"She was smiling, while thinking about me?"

"I guess so, I can't read minds, but I would believe so." Sokka noticed Aang's smile. "I've been telling you for the past year Aang." Aang looked at him quizzically. "Mai loves you bro, she has for a long time."

"You really think so?"

"Zuko and I have been saying so since year ten. It was pretty obvious." Sokka sighed, "Everyone knew, even Katara could see it, why do you think she seemed so shocked today. She was jealous."

Aang sighed, "I didn't even see her reaction, I was far too busy being terrified of how Mai had reacted."

"Doesn't seem like you had anything to worry about." Aang let out a sigh of relief, "Want to come down and spend some time with everyone before they leave?"

"Yeah, I really should."

* * *

Aang sat on the couch besides Mai, who had decided to stay the night as well, hoping to clear up some things between each other, Suki crashed on the spare bed in the hall way, whilst Zuko sat, half sobered up half still drunk playing the Xbox.

"You could have told me Aang." Mai stated calmly, "I'm surprised you didn't."

"Everyone openly knew how I felt about Katara, I guess since that kind of pushed the two of us away from day one, I didn't want the same to happen to you." Aang looked down at his feet, and then into her eyes, "You got me through so tough times Mai, I didn't want to lose you to a relationship."

Mai blushed slightly, "No one said you would lose me Aang."

"They didn't have to; no matter what I said about it though, the feeling was always there."

Mai shifted slightly, getting a little closer to Aang. "Is it there now?" Mai asked, her face inches from his.

Aang's breath got caught in his throat, his chest scampering for air. "Yeah…" He said, barely auditable as the remaining air escaped his lungs all at once.

Mai kissed him, a quick kiss, he barely had time to feel the delicate flesh of her crimson lips. "How about now." She could see the look of pleasure and intense interest on his face.

"Not so much."

Mai grabbed his hand and stood up, pulling him with her. "Come with me." She pulled him up the stairs, down the hall way and into his bedroom. "Sit on the bed." She commanded, and Aang did so.

Mai removed her grey coat that stopped at her mid-section. Next she removed her black heels, "What's next?" She asked Aang, gesturing at her black skirt and red long sleeve shirt, that had a showed a slight amount of cleavage.

Aang smiled, "Top." He could barely breath, the seductive smile across Mai's lips and the confidence as she almost danced whilst removing her shirt drove him insane. Once off Mai stood there, the skirt coming up to the middle of her stomach, her sizeable bust being restrained by a bright red lace bra, the slight outlines of abs on her stomach. "Now the skirt?"

"As you wish, birthday boy." Mai smiled, and from behind, she unzipped her black skirt, allowing the material to drop to the floor, leaving her in a black lace garter belt and black thong. She blushed, suddenly a little self-conscious. She could see Aang's admiring eyes tracing every curve of her alabaster skin.

"Come over here."

* * *

Aang awoke, Mai's left arm across his abdomen, her bare back facing him, the remainder of her naked form under the covers. Aang smiled, remembering the events of the night before, her clothing still lay in front of his closed door, her thong hung from the back board of his bed, and he could see her bra on the other side of the room, beside his computer. The sun shone in through the open window, it was almost midday and Mai hadn't seemed to move at all, still in a deep sleep.

Aang climbed out of bed, careful not to wake Mai, he walked over to his draws, stepping on Mai's skirt on his way. He pulled on fresh underwear and casual sweat pants and a black singlet. He walked out of his room, down the stairs and into the kitchen.

Zuko was sitting at the kitchen island, his left arm holding up his head whilst he drank coffee with his right, Suki was cooking bacon on the large stove. "Hey Aang." Zuko called when he noticed his friend enter the room. "Didn't see you go off to bed last night, Suki is cooking breakfast for the three of us… well lunch I guess."

Aang poured his own coffee from what was premade on the counter, he took a seat beside Zuko. "Hey guys."

Suki began plating up the food, "How did you sleep Aang?"

"Better than you would think." Aang stated, again thinking of the gorgeous girl in his bed. "You're going to need another plate."

Suki looked at him for a moment before she realized. "Aang you didn't?"

Aang shrugged, "I did."

He saw the look on Suki's face go from surprise to disappointment. "It took you three days to sleep with another girl? What about Katara?"

Aang sighed, "Not just any girl, it was Mai." He paused for a moment, letting the realization of just how much he cared for Mai hit Suki. "And I don't care about Katara anymore, she made her decision."

Suki nodded softly and pulled out another plate, deciding not to argue the point any further.

"How was it?" Zuko asked, he was the first Aang had told about his affection for Mai, and the one who wanted Aang to choose Mai over Katara for the longest time.

Aang smiled again, slightly blushing. "So much better than I ever imagined."

Zuko high fived him and drank the rest of his coffee. "School is going to be interesting. Sokka called a few hours ago, Katara told him about what had happened to Jet." Zuko paused, reading Aang's emotions to see how he reacted, seeing no change in mood he continued, "Jet has a fractured cheek bone, but there was no damage to the eye."

Aang didn't speak for a moment, he sipped his coffee first. "I guess I should probably apologize for that."

"I would give it a few days, he kind of deserved it." Suki smiled and placed the two plates in front of the boys. "How about you go wake Mai up, her food is ready."

Aang looked Suki in the eyes, his smile a method of saying thank you for approving of his choices.

* * *

"Thanks for the lift man, can't believe my car died again." Zuko sighed.

Aang continued driving, it was still a few minutes before he would get to school. "No worries, you really need to get rid of that thing man." He turned the corner, the road that lead to the school in view. "You've spent more on repairs than the car is even worth."

"It was my first car, you can't expect me to just throw it out."

"It's a piece of crap, can't justify it by calling it a car."

"I guess you're right." Zuko sighed, "How's Mai? I haven't seen her around since Saturday morning."

"That would be because she was at my house again Saturday night."

Zuko almost laughed, "You guys are still going at it? It wasn't just a one night stand thing?"

"You know I love her Zuko."

"I know… So, is it official?"

"Like, dating? Nah I don't think so, I guess that's the commitment that ruins friendships. If we are just having sex and hooking up, then we don't have to worry about breaking up." Aang thought out loud, he had been so caught up in sleeping with Mai that he hadn't thought about what it made them.

"I guess that makes sense in some weird way." Zuko stated.

"Speaking of Mai, who else knows about us?" Aang asked, parking in the school lot.

Zuko thought for a few minutes, "Toph and Sokka were with Suki at the Jasmine dragon last night, I guess She would have told them. And Ty lee was with Mai last night, so she might have told her."

"That leaves Katara and Jet to find out then."

"Are you going to tell them?"

Aang sighed, "Nope, I don't want to talk to them."

"they are going to find out, and you know Katara will be pissed that you are no longer fighting for her."

"Good." Aang paused, "Maybe I should just kiss Mai in front of her."

"You're going public already?"

"I guess that wouldn't be the best idea, I don't know man, I guess they will find out eventually." Aang climbed out of the car and walked with Zuko towards his locker.  
**  
**

* * *

***two months later*  
**"Seriously, Katara still doesn't know?" Mai asked smirking, she sat with Aang in a private section of the Jasmine Dragon.

Aang shrugged, "I guess not, we haven't really done anything different in public."

"Except for that one time." Mai smirked, thinking about the time she had pleasured him in the unisex bathroom at school.

"Except for that one time." Aang repeated smiling. "You know she will be pissed when she finds out, especially now that we have been fooling around for two months.

Mai smiled, "Hopefully she is mad, at least then she will know she lost."

"Harsh, We aren't even dating yet." Aang winked at her, a waiter placing their drinks down on the table.

Mai sipped her coffee. "About that, any plans for the future?"

"I don't know Mai." Aang started, "You know how hard it was for us to even get to this point, I don't want either of us to feel trapped." He paused, thinking over his words, "I'm not saying a relationship wouldn't be a good idea, it's just, I don't want to lose you."

"I never said I had a problem with fooling around Aang." Mai smirked and took another sip.

* * *

***3 months later*  
**"You really haven't asked her out yet?" Sokka asked, a pool cue in hand.

"I guess not, it just doesn't feel like I need to, you know?"

Sokka took his shot, "Not really man. It's been five months."

Aang readied his own shot, "The best five months."

"What do you guys even do, I mean, you're not dating." Sokka pondered.

"I think you already know man."

"Besides the sex."

Aang shrugged, "Normal couple stuff I guess, we just don't have that sense of commitment and all that, the stuff that comes with being in a long term relationship."

"And you still love her? After all this time."

"Of course I do."

"That's good to hear man." Sokka started, taking another shot. "On a side note, we have practice tonight."

"Parkour*, again?"

Sokka shrugged, "Zuko wants us to be ready, he has a lot riding on this deal."

"It's still two months away, what's Long Feng going to do if we fail anyway?"

"I'm sure you know."

Aang gulped.

* * *

***18 months later***

"Aang, I'm moving." Mai stated, she was sitting in Aang's room, her clothes scattered across the room.

"Where to?" Aang asked, curious.

Mai sighed, "Omashu."

"Omashu? For how long?"

"Could be a few years, I don't know. My dad got a new job."

Aang exhaled, "What about us?"

"We can try long distance?"

"You know how that turns out."

"I know, but I love you Aang."

"And I love you." Aang thought a few things over, "I guess we are just going to have to try, hey?"

"That's all we can do."

* * *

***parkour – free running, it's a form of running that involves getting from point A to point B the quickest, generally meaning a lot of climbing/jumping is used.**

**As with Order of the white Lotus, this is based on events in my own life, slightly changed but mostly the same, so I do hope I give the stories of my own life justice.**


End file.
